Contents

Introduction

1. Development situation of the African region: General context

Macroeconomic context
Political situation
Social situation
Trends in the African labour market

2. Major African challenges

Poverty and employment situation
Governance and democratization
Human resource development and employability
Working conditions
Human rights and international labour standards

3. The ILO response to African challenges

Implementation of the ILO programme in Africa

Poverty alleviation through employment promotion
Promotion of democracy and international labour standards
Promotion of training systems and programmes
Protection of workers

Programming framework and methods of application

The Active Partnership Policy
ILO structure in Africa
Trends in technical cooperation
Programme application methods

4. Specific activities for employers and workers

Social dialogue and consultation among the social partners
Activities for employers
Activities for workers

5. Conclusion

Bibliography
 

Annexes
Annex 1.	Ratification by African countries of the ILO's fundamental Conventions
Annex 2.	Status of country objectives (CO) in Africa, 1994-99
Annex 3.	Ongoing projects and programmes in Africa, 1994-99
Annex 4.	Main documents, reports and studies published on the African region, 1994-99
Annex 5.	Main meetings organized by the ILO in Africa, 1994-99
Annex 6.	Statistical tables
	Table 1.	Basic indicators by country
	Table 2.	GDP, growth rate in real terms: 1980-98
	Table 3.	Labour force participation rates
	Table 4.	Labour force: Forecasts 1995-2010
	Table 5.	Proportion of children under the age of 14 in the labour force
	Table 6.	Activity rate of children aged 5-14 years: Africa compared with other regions
	Table 7.	Population with access to infrastructure
	Table 8.	Trade union membership in African countries
	Table 9.	Profile of national employers' organizations

Acronyms and abbreviations
 

ACODEP	Support to decentralized village communities for participatory development
ACOPAM	Organizational and cooperative support to grass-roots initiatives
AFRO/ICFTU	African Regional Organization
AIDS	Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
ALIS	African labour information system
APP	Active Partnership Policy
ARLAC	African Regional Labour Administration Centre
BAD	African Development Bank
BCEAO	Central Bank of West African States
BEAC	Bank of Central African States
CILSS	Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drug Control in the Sahel
CRADAT	African Regional Centre for Labour Administration
CTA	Chief technical adviser
CUROR	Central Unit for the Reorganization of Rural Areas (Cameroon)
DOAWTU	Democratic Organization of African Workers' Trade Unions
EAMAT	East Africa Multidisciplinary Team
EMAC	Central Africa Multidisciplinary Team
EMAO	West Africa Multidisciplinary Team
EMAS	Sahelien Africa Multidisciplinary team
GDP	Gross domestic product
HDI	Human development index
HIV	Human immunodeficiency virus
IBRD	International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
IILS	International Institute for Labour Studies
ILS	International labour standards
IMF	International Monetary Fund
IPEC	International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO)
ISEP	International Small Enterprise Programme (ILO)
ISPEC	Pan-African Institute of Education and Cooperative Training (Cotonou)
JFA	Jobs for Africa
LDC	Least developed country
MDT	Multidisciplinary team
MERS	Monitoring, evaluation and reporting system (ILO)
NAMAT	North Africa Multidisciplinary Team
NGO	Non-governmental organization
OATUU	Organization of Africa Trade Union Unity
OAU	Organization of African Unity
OECD	Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
PA-SMEC	Support Programme for Mutual Benefit Societies and Savings and Credit
PACDEL	Concerted autonomous participatory process for the development of local employment
PRODIAF	ILO/Belgian programme on social dialogue in French-speaking Africa
PRODIAL	ILO/Portugal programme on social dialogue in Portuguese-speaking countries
PSI	Programme support income
RBTC	Regular budget for technical cooperation
SADC	Southern African Development Community
SAMAT	Southern Africa Multidisciplinary Team
SIYB	Start and Improve Your Business
SME	Small and medium-sized enterprises
SOGVERS	Support for village groups in the East Savana region
STEP	Strategies and tools against social exclusion and poverty (ILO)
UEMOA	West African Economic and Monetary Union
UNAIDS	Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS
UNDP	United Nations Development Programme
UNFPA	United Nations Population Fund
UNHCR	Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
UNICEF	United Nations Children's Fund

Introduction

The Eighth African Regional Conference was held in Mauritius in January 1994 and focused on the development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and social protection. Since then a new set of rules for Regional Meetings has been adopted (1997) which specify that these meetings should constitute a platform for tripartite delegates to express their views on ILO regional activities.

The Ninth Regional Meeting is the main Meeting being organized by the ILO in Africa at the end of this century and the eve of the next millennium. This report reviews ILO activities in Africa since the last Meeting held in 1994 and also proposes a number of guidelines for future activities to serve as a basis for tripartite discussion during the Meeting.

Countries in the African region are facing a multitude of challenges. They have to find ways to boost their fragile economies, increase the value of human capital through education, training and health, and provide food security; but they have to contend with high population growth and accelerated urbanization, environmental deterioration, high levels of poverty, low productivity levels, small markets and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In addition, the region continues to be afflicted by ethnic conflicts and civil wars. Despite these problems and challenges, economic performance has improved substantially during the last five years in a number of countries, as has the democratization process.

This Report focuses on identifying what the ILO has done to alleviate the problems prevailing in the region during the past five years. It contains four chapters. Chapter 1 reviews the economic, political and social developments in the region during the period covered by the Report. It describes the efforts being made by many countries to meet their macroeconomic targets and implement Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs). Macroeconomic performance has been encouraging in several countries; indeed the number of countries achieving positive economic growth has increased over the years.

However, despite this favourable macroeconomic performance, living standards have actually dropped for a vast proportion of the population and unemployment and poverty have increased. Constraints to development are still very much present in Africa. These constraints have seriously hampered growth and the implementation of economic reforms. In most countries in the region, the level of saving, investment and domestic consumption has remained low and the economic environment is not yet conducive to private investment due to institutional blockages and difficulties in accessing credit.

On the political side, the number of sub-Saharan countries with elected governments has increased from five to 24 since 1990. However, the pace is still slow compared to expectations. This transition from one-party authoritarianism to multi-party democracy is taking place alongside economic reform programmes. When free elections are held, they are welcomed enthusiastically. Regrettably, violence on the streets is far too common in many African countries. Furthermore, the large number of armed conflicts in the region have serious repercussions on prospects for employment promotion, poverty reduction and socio-economic development as a whole. The Report stresses that greater political stability in the region would allow leaders and communities to focus more on critical development issues rather than, as at present, devoting much of their attention to settling conflicts.

The social situation in Africa has been, to a large extent, marked by increasing poverty, bad governance, corruption, civil strife and the negative impact of HIV/AIDS. As regards labour market trends, the report points out that although unemployment problems are serious in many countries, a relatively small percentage of the active population is actually registered as unemployed. The concept of unemployment is usually associated with those employed in the formal sector — but they scarcely exceed 20 per cent of workers in some countries. Relatively low recorded rates of open unemployment mask the real magnitude of the employment problem in Africa. Given the extreme poverty and absence of unemployment benefits in a number of African countries, workers cannot afford to be unemployed in the strict sense of the term; they are engaged in survival activities, even if these do not provide full employment or generate sufficient income.

Formal employment has been declining in Africa over the past few years. SAPs have resulted in retrenchments in both the public and private sectors. This has led to an increase in the informalization of economies and growing unemployment and underemployment.

Chapter 2 of the Report highlights the major challenges faced by African countries that should envisage strategies to try and improve the living conditions of their populations, such as poverty alleviation through employment promotion; promotion of good governance and democracy; human resource development and employability; working conditions; and human rights and international labour standards.

Poverty constitutes a major challenge in Africa, with an average of more than 50 per cent living below the poverty line. As regards governance and democratization, the Report stresses that although positive changes are taking place in the region much needs to be done. Political instability, discrimination and gender inequality are still present — all of which have direct repercussions on poverty.

Working conditions, social protection and occupational safety and health are unreliable in Africa, particularly in the rural and informal sectors. Exploitation of child labour is prevalent. In the formal sector, long years of crisis in the region have not helped to improve working conditions; the overriding concern has been to boost economic
recovery and this has encouraged the infringement of minimum
working standards.

Concerning human rights and international labour standards, the Report lists a number of obstacles in Africa: weak institutional capacities of bodies responsible for ratification and implementation; financial costs of implementing the instruments; poor internal communication within government structures; insufficient capacity of the social partners; and, in some instances, inconsistencies between the requirements of the Conventions and the provisions of national legislation.

Chapter 3 describes the ILO Programme for Africa, referring to various projects and meetings in the region. Employment-intensive programmes have always been part of the overall ILO strategy to promote employment creation, private-sector development and poverty alleviation in Africa. This chapter highlights some of the flagship programmes in Africa, such as Jobs for Africa, Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) and organizational and cooperative support to grass-roots initiatives (ACOPAM). It also points out that much remains to be done to improve the occupational safety and health conditions of workers and the working environment and to provide workers with greater social protection. The action advocated by the ILO has been inspired by a concern to ensure better social benefits within the framework of existing structures and, above all, by a desire to ensure that greater account is taken of the needs of the majority of workers who carry out their activities outside the modern sector.

Chapter 3 also highlights the urgent need to reassess and reform social protection systems in Africa. Social security systems in Africa are affected by limited coverage, inadequate financing systems and inappropriate policies. In many countries less than 10 per cent of the total labour force — corresponding to specific categories of wage-earners in the formal sector — is covered. The transition to market economies and the need to attract foreign investments have forced many States to lower the existing safety and health standards and the minimum requirements regarding working conditions. The last part of the chapter reviews human and financial resources.

Chapter 4 details specific activities for workers' and employers' organizations. Employers' and workers' organizations have become increasingly involved over the years in various aspects of labour relations: participation; gender mainstreaming; the campaign against child labour; awareness-raising and education, in particular among their membership; and participation in national and regional consultations.

After nearly two decades of economic stagnation, the economic performance in several African countries has improved substantially during the past five years. This came after the deterioration of the socio-economic conditions in Africa during the 1980s, a decade widely regarded as Africa's "lost decade" of development opportunities. The turnaround started in the early 1990s, and is fairly widespread, taking place in countries that account for about half of Africa's population and output.

A host of factors caused the acute economic crisis of the 1980s, including: poor economic policy management leading to inflation; unemployment; rising fiscal deficits; and capital flight. These were exacerbated by external factors, particularly: low and falling primary commodity prices; declining terms of trade; dwindling capital flows into Africa that resulted in mounting current account and balance of payments deficits; and an escalating internal and external debt stock.

Confronted with these problems, most African countries have, since the 1980s, been implementing Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) recommended by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as antidotes to the economic crisis. SAPs were presented as programmes that would restore stabilization in the short term and sustainable growth in the medium to long term.

From 1994 to 1998, most African countries experienced economic growth; this was the case for 37 out of the 48 sub-Saharan countries. Average real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for sub-Saharan Africa was 2.9 per cent in 1995, climbing to 3.4 per cent in 1997 and reaching 3.2 per cent in 1998. Economic growth averaged 3.8 per cent between 1995 and 1998.⁽¹⁾ The number of countries with improving performance has been growing in recent years. In 33 countries, economic growth exceeds population growth with the result that per capita incomes are now increasing — in some countries for the first time in decades.

As shown in table 1.1, the average macroeconomic indicators are improving in the region. Macroeconomic disequilibrium was reduced through lower public deficits, improvement of balance of payments, reduced inflation, increased monetary discipline, etc.

Table 1.1. Africa: Macroeconomic indicators, 1990-98
 

Indicators	1990	1995	1996	1997	1998
1. Real GDP growth rate (%)	2.5	2.9	5.5	3.4	3.2
2. Real per capita GDP growth rate (%)	-0.3	0.2	2.7	0.7	0.6
3. Inflation (%)	17.0	33.0	25.1	13.7	12.0
4. Investment ratio (% of GDP)	22.0	20.0	18.9	18.7	20.0
5. Fiscal balance (% of GDP)	-4.3	-3.0	-2.5	-1.8	-2.7
6. Growth of money supply (%)	20.1	22.6	18.4	15.8	12.4
7. Export growth, volume (%)	4.8	9.2	8.1	4.4	-0.7
8. Import growth, volume (%)	4.8	7.3	3.2	7.9	4.8
9. Terms of trade (%)	5.0	-0.6	2.5	1.5	-5.7
10. Trade balance ($ billion)	7.1	-4.6	4.4	2.2	-11.4
11. Current account ($ billion)	-8.9	-13.5	-4.4	-4.2	-19.0
12. Current account (% of GDP)	-1.9	-2.7	-0.8	-0.8	-3.4
13. Debt service (% of exports)	21.9	23.0	22.2	18.8	22.5
Source: ADB: African Development Report, 1999 (Washington, Oxford University Press, 1998).

The number of countries experiencing positive real GDP growth increased significantly from 1990 to 1998. As shown in figure 1.1, the number of countries experiencing negative real GDP growth declined from 21 in 1990 and ten in 1995 to four in 1998.

While world output grew by 2.2 per cent in 1998 compared to 4.2 per cent in 1997, output changes from Africa remained relatively stable, declining from 3.4 per cent in 1997 to 3.2 per cent in 1998.⁽²⁾ This was partly due to the increase in the number of countries experiencing real GDP growth and the region's limited integration in the global financial system. Figure 1.2 shows the trends in output changes for Africa, compared to other regions in the world. Globalization provides new opportunities but also creates risks for African workers, enterprises and economies as a whole. As the region cannot stop or slow the process, it is necessary to ensure that the benefits achieved are maintained and to identify policies to contain the social, economic and political risks asociated with this new world order.

However, despite the favourable macroeconomic performance in the region, SAPs have led to a decline in living standards for a vast proportion of the population, mounting unemployment and increasing poverty. The constraints to development still remain to a great extent in Africa.

The economic environment in most countries in the region is not yet conducive to private investment, due to institutional blockages and difficulties in accessing credit. These constraints have seriously hampered growth and the implementation of economic reforms. The level of saving, investment and domestic consumption has remained low in most countries. The burden of debt is still an obstacle to development; the debt service is still high and, in some countries, it accounts for an important share of exports. The external vulnerability of African economies remains high despite the implementation of reform programmes. Conflicts and civil strife persist in several countries.

Although economic growth has, as stated above, been positive, the poorest sections of the population have yet to reap its rewards. The cost reduction measures associated with the reform programmes have had a direct consequence on living standards. Social conditions of the people have continued to deteriorate, with more than 50 per cent of the people living in absolute poverty.

Political situation

Despite the diversity of situations that characterize Africa, the democratic overtures that began at the end of the 1980s continued right through the 1990s, accompanied in the majority of countries by the revision of constitutions and electoral laws, the setting up of institutions (e.g. independent electoral committees, courts of audit, supreme courts, social and economic councils, etc.), political parties and trade union pluralism, the organization of elections and the diversification and proliferation of independent media.

The first half of the 1990s thus witnessed the implementation and strengthening of the democratization process against a background of economic crisis, structural adjustment and a variety of other reforms. During the second half of the decade, while it was recognized that some progress had been made, it also became clear that the region needed peace and stability to consolidate its democratic structures, its integration and the upturn in economic growth, and to avoid marginalization at a time when globalization was gaining pace.

The democratization process in Africa is expected to result in more participatory styles of government, thus building up confidence in the region and attracting increased domestic and foreign investment. On the other hand, countries that are politically unstable and embroiled in civil wars face the risk of capital flight and lack of confidence — and in these countries job creation prospects are dim.

Furthermore, the large number of armed conflicts in the region have serious repercussions on prospects for employment promotion, poverty reduction and socio-economic development as a whole. During the first half of 1998 alone, there were about 17 intra-state armed conflicts which had serious repercussions on most of the subregions, in particular, the Horn of Africa, the Great Lakes region, Central and West Africa. These conflicts also pose a major challenge to the region's future in human terms, as they usually result in an increase in the number of refugees and disabled and displaced people. There are refugees in almost all African countries and the African continent has the lion's share of refugees in the world.

It is also worth noting that greater political stability in the region would allow leaders and communities to focus more on critical development issues, rather than, as at present, devoting much of their attention to settling conflicts. Poverty is among the root causes as well as the effects of armed conflicts which erode socio-economic development, destroy workplaces, undermine working conditions and training opportunities.

The current process of democratization has led to increased participation of the civil society in the formulation and implementation of economic and political policies. This was acknowledged by the tripartite participants of the latest Biennial Meeting of African Employment Planners, held in February 1999; they stated that although consultations were still not very widespread, governments in several countries were now consulting with national stakeholders.

This process has also led to the emergence of civil "watchdogs" such as human rights associations and NGOs, which are contributing to the development process and to the decentralization processes of decision-making. Although their presence is not very strong in some countries, these "watchdogs" are gradually gaining strength.

Social situation

The social situation in Africa has been, to a large extent, marked by increasing poverty, bad governance, corruption, civil strife and the negative impact of HIV/AIDS. Africa has more than 30 countries classified as least developed countries (LDCs), with an average population growth of 3 per cent. Since 1995, however, some of these countries have been recording economic growth that is exceeding their population growth. None the less, the majority of the people in these countries live under conditions of absolute poverty.

In Africa, women are disproportionately poor — and bear a disproportionate share of the responsibility of the household. Despite the fact that more women are involved in subsistence agricultural activities, in most countries women do not own land under customary laws. In addition, SAPs have tended to discriminate against non-tradables; hence women have tended to be more negatively affected by this bias, as they are more involved in non-tradable activities. Furthermore, African women are more illiterate when compared to their male counterparts.

Increased rural-urban migration has resulted in communities settling in the outskirts of towns, which is an increasing cause for concern. The urbanization rate does not match the availability of facilities in these areas. Unemployment and underemployment — particularly of young people —, high competition and the reduction in the pool of jobs from the formal sector are all common features in most urban areas.

Generally speaking, urban communities appear to be less poor than those in the rural areas. However, the number of poor in towns and their outskirts is high. Despite decreasing job prospects, towns continue to attract many rural inhabitants, as it is assumed that they offer better conditions than rural communities.

For a general overview of the social situation, the UNDP's composite human development index (HDI) is a useful tool (table 1.2). This indicator, based on real GDP per capita, life expectancy at birth and level of education extends the economic concept of well-being. Africa experienced a slight progression in human well-being during the first two decades of independence in terms of per capita income, education and training, and life expectancy. After 1980, the situation changed in a number of countries, with per capita income falling until the middle of the 1990s. This gave rise to the concepts of Afro-pessimism and lost generations, despite the fact that overall the HDI continued to rise very slightly and that some countries, while restricted, experienced sustained dynamism.

Table 1.2. Principal development indicators in Africa compared
to other regions (1997)
 

	Sub-Saharan Africa	Least developed countries	Develping countries	Industralized countries	World
HDI	0.463	0.430	0.637	0.919	0.706
Life expectancy (years)	48.9	51.7	64.4	77.7	66.7
Real GDP per capita (PPP)*	1 534	992	3 240	23 741	6 332
(Women)	1 063	731	2 088	17 660	4 253
(Men)	2 004	1 258	4 374	30 050	8 103
Population without access to safe water 1990-97 (%)	50	41	28	—	—
AIDS cases per 100,000 population	111.1	69.1	28.9	99.1	39.7
Population without access to sanitation 1990-97 (%)	56	63	57	—	—
Infant mortality (% per thousand)	105	104	64	6	58
Education index	0.54	0.46	0.67	0.96	0.73
Daily per capita supply of calories	2 226	2 090	2 129	2 986	2 336
* Purchasing power parity.
Source: UNDP: Human Development Report 1999 (New York, Oxford University Press, 1999).

In the 1998 UNDP Human Development Report, only three African countries were classified as having high human development (Seychelles, Mauritius, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya); 13 had medium human development and the remainder had low human development. In the 1999 report, no African country was in the high HDI cluster, 29 were in the medium cluster and the rest were in the low human development index group. According to UNDP data, Africa (sub-Saharan Africa, in particular) has the world's lowest level of human development. The lowest 20 countries in terms of the HDI index are all African.

Since HIV began spreading, an estimated 34 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa have been infected with the virus. Some 11.5 million of those people have already died, a quarter of them children (UNAIDS, 1998). Sub-Saharan Africa, with a population of less than 10 per cent of the total world population, is home to 66 per cent of HIV infections (UNAIDS/WHO, 1998). The HIV epidemic in Africa, despite efforts to contain it, continues to pose major challenges in the workplace and society as a whole. It is a human tragedy of immense proportions. AIDS is directly affecting the well-being of people, enterprises and the economies. HIV/AIDS is no longer just a health issue, but a development issue.

As of the end of 1998, it was reported that HIV-related illness is the commonest cause of death in the 15-49 year age groups. Thus, one of the characteristics of the epidemic is that those infected with AIDS tend to be in their prime productive years. The impact on the social and productive areas of the economies and societies cannot be underestimated since it is on this age group that all nations rely for support of families, production and, ultimately, the standard of living.

Trends in the African labour market

Sadly enough, it appears that the recent economic upsurge in Africa has not been accompanied by a similar trend in employment creation in the formal sector. Data is not available in most countries to provide firm evidence. The macroeconomic results of structural adjustment are generally seen as positive, but to a considerable extent the constraints on development remain and the social consequences are negative. The reforms that have taken place in the framework of structural adjustment programmes have led to a reduction in workforce numbers both in the public service and in the formal private sector, and to an increase in informal sector employment, which is often precarious from the point of view of working conditions and remuneration and lacks any social protection.

Although unemployment problems are serious in many countries, a relatively small percentage of the active population is actually registered as unemployed. The concept of unemployment is usually associated with those employed in the formal sector — but these barely exceed 20 per cent in some countries. Relatively low recorded rates of open unemployment mask the real magnitude of the employment problem in Africa. Given the extreme poverty and absence of unemployment benefits in a number of African countries, workers cannot afford to be unemployed in the strict sense of the term; they are engaged in survival activities, even if these do not provide full employment or generate sufficient income.

With an average of over 3 per cent annual population growth rate, Africa has the fastest growing population in the world, which has in turn resulted in a rapid labour force growth. Estimates depict that the rapid labour force growth in the 1990s is likely to continue into the early twenty-first century. The ILO World Employment Report 1998-99, projects a 2.9 per cent growth of the economically active population between 1997 and 2010. In other parts of the world, the predicted growth rate is lower: 1.9 per cent for South-East Asia, and 1.8 per cent for Latin America. With the 2.9 per cent growth of the economically active population, 8.7 million new jobseekers enter the market every year.

In some countries, less than 10 per cent of the labour force is employed in wage employment in the formal sector, the vast majority being employed in the urban informal sector and the rural sector. Unemployment is rapidly rising in the large African cities — ranging from 15 to 35 per cent in some large cities. Young people (15 to 24 years) account for between 60 and 75 per cent of the unemployed and often lack any professional qualifications. At the regional level, underemployment is a further major concern which particularly affects the rural and informal sectors.

Table 1.3 gives the rate of growth of total employment in selected African countries. As highlighted in the table, employment growth in most countries has been lower than labour force growth. A large proportion of new jobs created has been in the informal sector, where productivity and working conditions are poor. The African Employment Report 1997-98, suggests that this might be attributed to the adoption of SAPs by most African countries, which have led to widespread retrenchments and the displacement of workers.

Table 1.3. Labour market indicators for selected African countries
 

	Unemploy- ment rate 1		Annual employment growth rate 1		Annual labour force growth rate 1		Annual GDP growth rate 2
	1989 3	1995 4	1987-95 5	1992-95 6	1987-96 7	1993-96 8	1993-96 9	1997
Algeria	17.0	23.8	1.0	0.7	4.1	4.2	2.5	3.2
Benin	—	—	-6.4	7.3	2.7	2.6	4.9	—
Botswana	—	—	5.6	1.1	2.8	2.5	4.5	—
Burkina Faso	—	—	4.1	3.1	2.1	2.1	3.8	—
Burundi	—	—	-2.6	—	2.6	2.6	-6.7	—
Egypt	6.9	11.3	0.5	2.1	2.7	2.8	4.6	5.0
Kenya	—	—	3.3	—	3.0	2.7	3.2	1.3
Mauritius	5.0	6.0	2.3	—	2.1	3.3	4.9	—
Morocco	—	—	3.6	2.8	2.6	2.6	5.1	—
South Africa	—	5.1	—	—	2.2	2.0	2.7	1.7
Swaziland	—	—	2.1	1.5	3.4	3.8	2.8	—
Tunisia	16.2	—	3.2	—	2.9	3.0	4.5	5.6
Zimbabwe	—	—	2.3	1.4	2.8	2.3	3.8	—
— = not available.
1 ILO for employment and unemployment and World Bank for labour force; for Mauritius, national sources. 2 World Bank and IMF. 3 Tunisia (1988). 4 Algeria (1992); South Africa (1996); Mauritius (1997). 5 Benin and Burkina Faso (1987-92); Burundi and Kenya (1987-91); Egypt (1989-95); Mauritius (1987-97); Morocco (1989-92); Swaziland (1987-93); Tunisia (1989-94); Zimbabwe (1987-94). 6 Algeria (1991-95); Benin, Burkina Faso and Morocco (1991-92); Swaziland (1992-93); Zimbabwe (1992-94). 7 Mauritius (1987-97). 8 Mauritius (1995-97). 9 Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa and Tunisia (1993-97).
Source: ILO: Yearbook of Labour Statistics 1997 (Geneva, 1997); IMF: International Financial Statistics Yearbook 1997 (Washington, DC, 1997); World Bank: World Development Indicators 1998 (Washington, DC, 1998).

Given the lack of opportunities in rural areas, the urban labour force is growing due to increased rural-urban migration. In many sub-Saharan countries, the urban labour force is expected to grow at an average rate of 6 per cent per annum.

In Africa, a large share of the population derives their livelihood from agriculture. Labour market conditions have not improved in the rural areas, despite the rural-urban migration. In fact, in some countries, agricultural output has declined, leading to an overall decline in food output per capita.

The majority of the sub-Saharan labour force is engaged in agriculture, although there is a wide disparity in figures; these range from 17 per cent in Mauritius to 92 per cent in Burkina Faso, Rwanda and Burundi. An average of 68 per cent of the African labour force is in the agricultural sector.⁽³⁾

Formal employment has been declining in Africa over the last few years. SAPs have resulted in retrenchments in both the public and private sectors. This has led to an increase in the informalization of the economies and increased unemployment and underemployment.

Between 1980 and 1995, labour force productivity, calculated according to output per worker or the GDP rate in relation to the active population, fell consistently due to a combination of factors: the low economic growth rate; the high growth rate of the working population; and the contraction in investment. The fall in the average labour force productivity level, compounded by rapid inflation, led to a fall in real income.

The low rate of investment growth and the rapid rise in the number of jobseekers has caused a reduction in the capital-employment ratio in some sectors. It should be noted that income erosion is more pronounced in the public sector than in the private sector, given that the reduction in the wage bill in the public sector is one of the main objectives of SAPs. Despite the economic recovery which is being consolidated in the region, the positive effects on employment, wages and income are not sufficiently discernible.

The labour force participation of women has been decreasing due to the negative effects of SAPs, the prolonged economic crisis and retrenchments in the civil service. The situation is worsened by the fact that women are already suffering from occupational segregation, educational disparity and cultural factors. Most women are therefore concentrated in the labour-intensive agricultural and informal sectors which have poor working conditions, low levels of technology and education skills and lower remuneration.

In Africa, women dominate the urban informal sector and peasant agriculture — both of which have the lowest productivity levels. The ILO African Employment Report 1998-99 reviews a number of studies on female participation rates in the labour market. According to The World Development Report 1996 (World Bank), in 1994, females accounted for 44 per cent of the labour force in sub-Saharan Africa and 28 per cent of the labour force in North Africa and the Middle East.

Unemployment rates are particularly high among young people — especially school drop-outs. More recently, in some countries, they have been high among graduates which has given rise to the problem of educated unemployment.

The problem of youth employment reflects the contraction of jobs in the formal sector. It is also linked to the fact that many African countries continue to record high population growth rates, with the population structure being relatively young. Children of school age in some countries account for more than half of the population. In most countries, despite the informalization of the economy, there is no straightforward transition from school to self-employment in the urban informal sector.

Basic education for young people and the elimination of adult illiteracy remain challenges for many countries. In 1995, the adult literacy rate was 57 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa; the percentage of children of school age in full-time education was 75 per cent for primary education and 25 per cent for secondary education. The working population and those preparing to take up employment do not always have the indispensable foundations for acquiring the qualifications necessary to promote efficient enterprises, irrespective of the sector under consideration. In a number of countries, governments are no longer able to raise revenue to finance primary education of any quality.

The employment prospects for Africa in the years ahead will be contingent upon a number of factors that include: sustained economic growth; macro and sectorial policies that are sensitive to employment creation; overall and sectorial capital labour ratios; labour market flexibility and mobility; ability of the economy to innovate and adapt imported and appropriate technology; and elasticity of employment with respect to output. Furthermore, African countries need to adjust the pace of their economic reforms to reflect particular national realities.

1. African Development Bank (ADB): African Development Report, 1999 (Washington, Oxford University Press, 1998).

2. ADB: African Development Report, 1999, ibid.

3. ILO: African Employment Report 1998-99 (Addis Ababa, 1999).

2. Major African challenges

Countries in the African region are facing a multitude of challenges: they have to find ways to boost their fragile economies, increase the value of human capital through education, training and health and provide food security; but they also have to contend with high population growth and accelerated urbanization, environmental deterioration, high levels of poverty, debt burden, low productivity levels, small markets and the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

The region continues to be afflicted by ethnic conflicts and civil wars, exacerbated by economic failures. Two decades of structural adjustment have produced no significant break in a familiar vicious circle. Poverty and inequality generate social conflict and violence; these lead to political instability and uncertainty which, in turn, lead to low investment and slow growth — thus deepening poverty. The economic situation in the region as a whole remains fragile, with private investment as a share of GDP still below the levels of the 1970s. The social situation remains critical, with more than 50 per cent of the population living in absolute poverty. However, as stated above, in recent years several countries have made significant progress towards greater social participation, public accountability of the State, and sustainable economic policies.

Most of these challenges have been the subject of global summits which go beyond the concerns unique to Africa, but Africa nevertheless has played an important role in them, as has the ILO within the framework of its mandate: the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro), the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo), the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing), the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen), the Conference on Human Settlements (Istanbul) and the Conference on Child Labour (Oslo). The major challenges in the spheres focused on by the ILO concern: governance, democratization and the case of countries involved in conflicts or emerging from them; poverty and employment; working conditions; human rights and international labour standards.

Poverty and employment situation

Poverty constitutes a major challenge in Africa. On average more than 50 per cent of the inhabitants of sub-Saharan Africa live below the poverty line, which constitutes the highest percentage in all regions of the world. Half the continent's population lives on less than US$1 per day. According to current trends, almost 400 million people in Africa will be living below the poverty line as the world approaches the next century. The macroeconomic indicators that have been favourable in recent years do not translate into a significant reduction in poverty and the fate of the majority of the population remains deplorable. Of 47 countries classified in the world as LDCs, 33 are African. An evaluation of poverty in these countries reveals that:

• rural areas are more widely and more severely affected than urban areas;
• the rural world is not "homogenous" from the point of view of poverty. It is generally the regions with low rainfall and the rural areas of countries involved in conflicts which have the highest concentrations of poor and extremely poor people.

In the coastal countries bordering the Sahel it is the northern regions which are most affected by poverty. However, poverty is far from absent in other rural regions, even if it does not manifest itself quite so acutely. Pockets of poverty are reported in the rural world even in regions with recognized agricultural potential. The same holds true for certain coastal and forest areas in coastal countries. The existence of these pockets is often explained not by the absence of natural resources that could be developed, but by certain restrictive factors: enclosed areas, lack of credit for the financing of new activities, lack of organization of local markets, etc.

The outskirts of towns are an increasing cause for concern. These areas are confronted with a rise in underemployment — particularly of young people —, high competition, a reduction in the pool of jobs deriving from the formal sector and high immigration. Although, generally speaking, towns appear to be less poor than the rural areas, the growth rate of the population in the poor and very poor social strata of these outlying urban areas is also very high. It goes without saying that the greater the poverty in rural areas, the higher the migration towards urban areas. In spite of the fall in the job creation potential, towns continue to attract large numbers of rural inhabitants.

Although the macroeconomic results of structural adjustment are generally considered positive, constraints on development still remain to a great extent and there are bound to be social repercussions. The reforms that have taken place in the framework of SAPs have led to a reduction in the workforce, both in the public service and in the formal private sector, and to an increase in informal sector employment, which is often precarious from the point of view of working conditions and remuneration and lacks any social protection.

Particular attention should therefore be paid to the problems raised by the informal economy, which accounts for about 60 per cent of the urban labour force in the region. Though it provides vital employment, the informal economy raises major concerns for ILO constituents. Trade unions worry that informal labour practices will both undermine labour legislation and reduce levels of formal employment; employers are concerned about "unfair" competition from informal producers; and governments wish to preserve the growth benefits of the informal economy while providing adequate protection for their workers, in the form of decent working conditions, occupational safety and health and social security.

ILO constituents in Africa stress the need to increase employment and remuneration. This will require a multifaceted approach; emphasis must be placed on the promotion of vocational training and small enterprises, as well as productivity increases, while fostering economic and social security, combating child labour and responding to acute social and political crises.

ILO constituents also consider that an important reason for poor economic performance has been the lack of appropriate policy advice. Many followed the recommendations of the Bretton Woods institutions, sometimes reluctantly, and adopted a wide range of reforms. These involved liberalization, deregulation, privatization and reducing the role of the State. Nevertheless, while it is accepted that reforms are necessary, many constituents now want advice on reform programmes that are both market-oriented and socially sensitive and more geared to the specific context of African economies.

Constituents in the region need better labour information systems and programme management capacities in all priority fields of ILO activities in Africa. This need applies to both the administration and social partners, since a sound analysis of information is required for planning and implementation of programmes and policies.

Governance and democratization

The economic crises, social upheavals and armed conflicts which endure in Africa can largely be attributed to institutional failings. Various studies emphasize that the institutional capabilities are the missing link in African development and this institutional weakness has repercussions on peace and stability, macroeconomic management and social and cultural development. Improvements to the institutional framework must focus on fundamental elements such as the rule of law, public interest and the healthy management of public affairs, transparency and the struggle against corruption. Within the democratization process it may be observed that despite pluralism (the multi-party system, the media), the institutions which could counterbalance the executive power and strengthen the sense of responsibility (legislative power, judiciary, social partners, media) are weak; a number of laws have not been taken up by the population.

The weakness or the absence of a counterbalance perpetuates the patrimonial State, and political and personal loyalty is rewarded more than merit. One important aspect of the reforms is therefore to lift the constraints weighing down a very unfavourable macro-institutional form of governing. Also, in the framework of social dialogue programmes set up in the region, the approach consists above all of carrying out an "inventory" followed up by high-level tripartite seminars for an exchange of experiences at the subregional level in order to outline plans of action. The "Bata Declaration" (Central Africa, 1998) states that the governments, represented by their labour ministers, and the social partners reaffirm "the importance of promoting social dialogue, the guarantee of social peace, of democratic and responsible management of the economy, of harmony and serenity in the social climate ... (and intend) to bring national positive laws into line with the relevant provisions of the principal ILO Conventions to which each of the States is a party ...".

The lack of a consensus between the various social strata on how to respond to the major challenges of the individual countries and the continent must be overcome and the organizations of civil society should be consolidated; furthermore, the trade unions and workers' and employers' organizations should be strengthened in order to promote positive social dialogue, acknowledging that tripartite participation and the development of democratic institutions constitute the sine qua non of the effectiveness, transparency and responsibility which underlie good governance. Only by strengthening these institutional structures will Africa achieve effective development and quell the numerous conflicts and challenges it currently faces.

Sustained recovery and employment growth in Africa will also require political stability, good governance and democracy. ILO constituents in Africa have requested the ILO to contribute to good governance and development by helping minimize labour and other social conflicts. This assistance would involve such areas as labour administration, industrial relations, tripartite consultation, settlement of disputes, labour legislation and labour standards.

Gender inequality is a common feature in many labour institutions in the region. In some countries, this already begins at primary-school level, where female drop-outs are relatively high compared to their male counterparts. Social security systems also tend frequently to identify the family breadwinner as male. Labour market segmentation along gender lines generates structural differences between men and women that are difficult to address in conventional labour markets.

Discrimination on grounds of age, sex, ethnic origin, national extraction and religious or political beliefs as well as other grounds such as physical disability and HIV infection, continues to prevent certain categories of the population from achieving equal access to training, employment, factors of production and financing. Moreover, certain forms of forced labour still exist. These problems are exacerbated in countries afflicted by armed conflicts. The integration into national law of international labour standards on fundamental workers' rights, and particularly their application, still gives rise to problems. Violations of freedom of association still occur in some countries in the region.

African constituents also feel that regional and subregional integration would contribute considerably to better governance and sustainable growth. The ILO will therefore consider regrouping various activities aimed at supporting regional integration to achieve greater impact and visibility.

Human resource development and employability

In the current globalization process the employability of individuals depends to an ever-increasing extent on qualifications and, at the macroeconomic level, the competitiveness of national economies. Basic education for young people and the elimination of illiteracy for adults remain challenges for many countries. As globalization gathers pace and economic and social needs change, countries are faced with the task of: improving the efficiency of the labour force by making training policies and programmes more relevant to the needs of the population; making training more effective to meet the objectives of improved employability and productivity at work; developing the cost-efficiency of training; and ensuring equality of access to human resources training and development opportunities.

In 1995, the adult literacy rate was 57 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa; the percentage of children of school age in full-time education was 75 per cent for primary education and 25 per cent for secondary education. The working population and those preparing to take up employment thus always do not have the indispensable foundations for acquiring the qualifications necessary to promote efficient enterprises, irrespective of the sector under consideration.

Furthermore, the evolution in vocational training systems seen in Africa in recent years reveals major dysfunctions and impairments:

• the massive orientation of the entire educational and training system towards the model (real or presumed) of formal sector employment (public or private) which, however, in most countries on the continent, employs less than 10 per cent of the working population;
• the inadequacy of links between the training system on the one hand and the production system on the other, particularly as regards initial training; the difficulty of responding flexibly to specific needs and to setting aside models that have proved to be unsuitable;
• the lack of coordination between national policies to promote economic development, employment, education and training; the lack of consistency in particular, in terms of flow, content and level, between educational, literacy and vocational training
  programmes;
• very low enrolment capacity in vocational training structures which has not visibly progressed in recent years, as the resources allocated for training do not allow for qualitative and quantitative programmes that are in line with the needs of the economy, with social demand and with the pressure of school leavers;
• the lack of involvement of the social partners in decisions relating to training, to its management and its evaluation;
• strictly selective access to training facilities on the basis of criteria which, depending on the subjects considered, act as a de facto means of segregation: this is the case, for example, of young women primarily grouped in tertiary courses or in specific (supposedly "feminine") courses which causes problems for their vocational integration; it is also the case for disabled people who, if not excluded, are confined to training without any employment or even social integration prospects; lastly, it is the case for the poorest categories of the population, who, lacking sufficient
  resources to cover the financial outlay for their children's training, are forced to resort to more or less organized on-the-job apprenticeships.

  Working conditions

Working conditions, social protection and occupational safety and health are unreliable in Africa, particularly in the rural and informal sectors. Underemployment, precarious income and exploitation of child labour prevail. The use of pesticides and chemical products, the introduction of new technologies, pollution and environmental deterioration expose workers to hazards that are even more serious in view of the fact that people often are unaware of them. In the formal sector of enterprises, long years of crisis have not helped to improve working conditions because the concern for economic recovery at any price has encouraged the infringement of minimum standards. The intensification of globalization and competition and the development of export processing zones raise fears of worsening working conditions. The problems of alcoholism and drug abuse at the workplace should not be overlooked.

In some countries, social protection systems cover less than 10 per cent of the labour force, and this coverage is for a limited number of hazards. The overwhelming majority of the working population in the rural sector and the urban informal sector have no social protection. Despite progress seen in recent years, most African countries need innovative and better targeted programmes in the spheres of safety and health at work, and should reform and extend their social protection systems. Supported by ILO programmes such as ACOPAM and STEP, local experiences with mutual health and solidarity insurance companies offered to certain categories of people not covered by the public system are still limited in scope.

Human rights and international labour standards

African member States have always recognized the importance of Conventions, ratified or not. Conventions have always been an inspiration to the development of national legislations and practices. The ILO has always stated that it is not enough to ratify Conventions; the Conventions must also be used to improve the lives of the people of the respective countries. However, numerous structural weaknesses reduce the efficiency of the bodies responsible for ratifying and applying international labour standards. The ILO's Committee of Experts indicates that a third of the countries in the region do not send reports on the application of ratified Conventions or transmit information in response to its observations. Furthermore, in 1999, only five of the 53 countries had ratified the seven fundamental Conventions: 18 had ratified six; 13 had ratified five; five had ratified four; seven had ratified three; three had ratified two; and two countries had not ratified any.

The transition to pluralism is not easy for workers' organizations which often have to cope with violations of freedom of association. Fundamental ILO standards must be promoted at both the level of the social partners and at that of the subregional and regional institutions and the development partners.

Women must also be helped to benefit from the legislative improvements introduced following the transition to pluralism and the Fourth World Conference on Women, in order to have better access to employment and working conditions. Rural women, for instance, should participate to a greater extent in tripartite institutions at all levels in African countries.

The African region has to cope with problems of a technical and substantive nature. The technical obstacles include: weak institutional or material capacity within ministries which oversee the ratification and reporting process; the financial costs of implementing the instruments; poor internal communication within government structures; and insufficient capacity of the social partners and the tripartite bodies covering labour matters. The substantive problems include: inconsistencies between the requirements of the Conventions and the provisions in national legislation; the lack of national legislation altogether; or the complexity of the standards.

Ministries of Labour in Africa generally have few or poorly qualified staff and do not have sufficient resources to fulfil their mission. Their influence on the major policy guidelines for economic and social reforms is relatively limited and the confidence of employers' and workers' organizations is often tested. This situation explains the hurdles, delays and complaints which arise when it comes to the revision of legislation (Labour Codes, Social Security Codes), the ratification process and the application of standards. These difficulties also relate to the workings of the labour inspectorate and the public employment services.

With regard to child labour, 40 per cent of children between the ages of 5 and 14 years are forced to work. Thirty-two per cent of working children worldwide are African. The exploitation of child workers, particularly in agriculture, the informal sector and domestic service — and even as combatants — is a major problem in many African States. Even the protection available to them under certain forms of apprenticeship is usually inadequate. Altogether, some 16 million children work in Africa, often in dangerous conditions and subject to extreme forms of exploitation such as slavery, the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom, prostitution and the trafficking of young female domestic workers.

In 1998, only 57 countries in the world and 11 in Africa had ratified the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138). The deterioration in the social fabric and in traditional values, economic difficulties and the pauperization of large sections of both urban and rural society, shortcomings in the education and training systems, are all causes put forward to explain this phenomenon.

3. The ILO response to African challenges

The ILO response to the challenges outlined above and to the priorities of the region identified by its constituents is based on its knowledge base and advisory and other services. It is mainly channelled and implemented through its technical cooperation activities. The priorities of the region are identified in consultation with the tripartite partners of the ILO, also taking into account recommendations of world summits on development (box 3.1).
 

Box 3.1. Priorities of the ILO programme in Africa

Based on the challenges outlined in Chapter 2, the priorities of the ILO programme in Africa for the period under review are determined using a general framework, described in the report. The priorities during the period were: 1. Poverty alleviation through employment promotion Integration of employment issues into economic policies and programmes Employment and enterprise promotion Promotion of training systems and programmes 2. Protection of workers Improving working conditions, environment and the health and safety of workers

Strengthening and extension of social protection 3. Promotion of human rights, social dialogue and international labour standards Promotion of human rights Elimination of child labour Promotion of social dialogue and participation 4. Strengthening of information, planning and programming systems Provision of information for all activities to assist in the planning, implementation and evaluation of policies and programmes

Through its technical cooperation activities, the ILO provides concrete assistance to constituents for the promotion of social justice. The Active Partnership Policy (APP) has aimed to enhance synergy among all ILO means of action and to ensure that technical cooperation programmes are built on a real partnership with constituents and respond rapidly and efficiently to their needs, while being centred on the Organization's mandate and values.

The ILO's resource mobilization strategy was adopted by the Governing Body at its November 1997 meeting. This is updated in response to the changing environment and outlines various measures through which the Office seeks to promote relevance, coherence, quality and capacity to deliver a sound technical cooperation programme. The main activities implemented by the ILO programme in Africa are described below.

Implementation of the ILO programme in Africa

Poverty alleviation through employment promotion

Poverty alleviation through employment promotion is and has been the primary priority of the region, as highlighted in the current and previous Programme and Budgets. The creation of jobs and the reduction of poverty remain the major concerns of all countries in the region despite the recent encouraging economic growth achieved in more and more countries. Unemployment and poverty have not been significantly reduced as a result of this growth. Thus, the action taken in recent biennia can make only a partial contribution towards resolving the problems identified. In particular, this action has been targeted on strengthening national competencies through the application of various means: institutional support, advisory services (studies, recommendations), training and technical cooperation projects.

Integration of employment issues into economic policies and programmes

Steps have been taken to ensure that the economic reforms introduced are designed to achieve sustained growth which is favourable to employment promotion in terms of quantity and quality of jobs. The reforms concern both the formal, the informal and rural sectors. When jobs are created, measures should also be taken to guarantee appropriate remuneration as well as proper social protection.

Activities during the period under review included:

• Assistance was provided in the formulation of national policies to promote employment and combat poverty (in particular Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania, Togo, Uganda) and the production of technical support documents. In response to the reorganization of public employment services resulting from SAPs, the ILO provided assistance to 23 English-speaking African countries to help them improve the performance of public and private employment services. A number of country studies were also executed in Africa, providing useful input to the ILO programme on privatization and enterprise restructuring.
• The ILO implemented programmes to strengthen the capacities of governments and social partners to identify, formulate and implement effective sectoral reform programmes both for the economy and employment (in particular southern Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan).
• New initiatives have been developed to: promote employment and combat poverty through investment programmes which generate jobs, e.g. the AFRICATIP, and the decentralization of investments; improve the self-management capacities of communities; and implement social funds (in particular Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Guinea, Mali, Togo). Furthermore, the countries in the region are increasingly aware of the need to take account of the effects on employment of the choices made concerning investments, and the donors themselves are moving in the same direction. This positive change is, to a large extent, the result of studies undertaken with the ILO in the countries of the region and discussions held within the framework of tripartite meetings similar to that which took place in Abidjan in November 1998 for the countries of the Conseil de l'Entente.
• A subregional project, PREP, for employment promotion in Portuguese-speaking African countries (PALOP), funded by Portugal has been developed.
• Biennial Meetings of African Employment Planners were held during the period under review. The Fourth Meeting was held in Accra, November 1994; the Fifth Meeting in Pretoria, January 1997; and the Sixth Meeting in Abidjan, February 1999. These Meetings have provided an opportunity for directly involving the tripartite partners in identifying how employment issues can be integrated into the formulation and implementation of economic policies and programmes. The main message of the 1999 Meeting is highlighted in box 3.2.

• Major regional programmes have been formulated in consultation with partners at these meetings and other forums that are aimed at integrating employment promotion issues in economic management. The Jobs for Africa (JFA) programme, that was set up within the United Nations System-wide Special Initiative on Africa, and as a follow-up to the World Summit for Social Development, provides an alternative framework for employment-intensive growth and formulates diversified and cohesive programmes for job creation (box 3.3).

ILO activities have made countries, donors and other development partners in the region more concerned about the need to integrate employment and manpower issues into economic management and to promote and support employment-oriented investments. An increasing number of requests are being made by member States for the ILO to assist them in formulating national employment policies and enhancing national capacities to implement employment creation schemes and programmes.

One area in which the development partners in the region are showing greater coherence of approach is in their recognition of the need to take into account the effects of investment options on employment, with priority given to cases of employment-intensive methods. The more harmonized approach adopted on this and other issues resulted in part from ILO studies and experience and the conclusions of two tripartite meetings, on the socio-economic consequences of the devaluation of the CFA franc, held in Dakar in 1994 and Yaoundé in 1997. These tripartite meetings also reviewed the employment situation in the subregion and recommended a number of strategies for employment creation and enterprise development, social protection and dialogue.

With regard to the improved observance of fundamental rights and reform programmes, special initiatives resulted in a better understanding between the ILO and the international financial institutions. Following consultations between the ILO and the World Bank on the reform of labour codes in Africa, held in Washington in October 1995, an ILO/World Bank seminar on the role of social partners in the revision of labour codes was organized in Abidjan in June 1997. As a result of the meeting, it may be expected that work-related rights will be taken into account more fully in the process of the reform of labour legislation as a follow-up to the restructuring programmes supported by the Bretton Woods institutions.

Employment-intensive programmes have always been part of the overall ILO strategy to promote employment creation, private sector development and poverty alleviation in Africa. These programmes encourage worker protection and democratization of the systems through transparent contract systems, enhanced popular participation, promotion of relevant ILO standards and the improvement of basic working conditions. Although the ILO has proved to have a comparative advantage in the area of labour-intensive programmes, labour-based techniques are still not widely known in the region. The African component of the Advisory Support and Information Services and Training (ASIST) programme based in Harare and Nairobi is supporting important labour-based infrastructure programmes in East and southern Africa. Cost-effective labour-intensive works have been implemented in Botswana, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mozambique, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia (box 3.4).
 

Box 3.4. ASIST
ASIST is a subprogramme under the Employment-Intensive Programme, whose objective is to increase the use of cost-effective labour base technology, with fair working conditions, in infrastructure development throughout sub-Saharan Africa, thereby promoting employment creation and income generation in rural and urban areas.	ASIST was established in 1990 and now has three components: rural infrastructure works; urban infrastructure works; and access to rural employment. The programme is active in more than 15 countries in East and southern Africa. The services provided by ASIST include: advisory support; information services; and training.

In the area of cooperatives, the organizational and cooperative support to grass-roots initiatives (ACOPAM) programme continued to be a major instrument in helping governments and partners' organizations in West Africa establish successful cooperative and associative forms of organization in support of grass-roots development. The programme is scheduled for completion in 1999 and the ILO has been taking concrete steps to capitalize on the experience by integrating it into a broader regional programme (PACDEL). ACOPAM has attracted substantial additional parallel funding from the World Bank, the European Union, UNDP and USAID. According to the data registered during the implementation of the programme, ACOPAM has helped to create more than 50,000 jobs, out of which 30,000 are self-employed. The interregional network programme for the development of human resources in development (COOPNET) continued to provide support to cooperatives and associations, particularly through training activities in Africa. A newsletter on topical issues concerning cooperatives has been issued for the regional coordinators of the programme in Africa and abroad.

Employment and enterprise promotion

In Africa, the promotion of employment essentially involves the development of small enterprises (including micro-enterprises), their organizations and cooperatives. Therefore, assistance should be extended to small enterprise owners and workers to enable them to meet the challenges of globalization and competition through: productivity improvement, increased management efficiency, better access to financing, technology, the required competencies and infrastructure as well as strengthened links between the formal and informal sectors. The assistance should also be directed towards the strengthening of productive capacities and self-employment of disadvantaged groups in the agricultural and informal sectors.

Assistance has been provided in the form of microfinance. Microfinance plays a key role in helping the poor against income fluctuations and to make very small investments in income-generating activities and micro-enterprises. It is therefore an indispensable component of empowerment, poverty reduction and job creation strategies, as evidenced by the design of the JFA programme.

There is also a need to monitor closely the development of the labour market to take account of new skills requirements and to evaluate vocational training and retraining needs, with the emphasis being placed on the workers' competencies in the context of evolving enterprise needs and their continuous employability.

Major efforts have been made in the following areas:

• strengthening of capacities and facilitation of exchanges (in particular with Asia) on the formulation of macroeconomic policies to promote the development of small and medium-sized enterprises in Africa;
• strengthening of cooperative entrepreneurship training capacities in cooperative HRD institutions through the COOPNET programme (Benin, Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia);
• strengthening of capacities for strategic management of local economies (Gambia, Morocco, Tunisia) and sectors with high growth potential (Cape Verde, Senegal);
• formulation (with the assistance of the ILO and other development partners) and support for the implementation of SMEs national development programmes (Cameroon, Rwanda — under study);
• creation of promotional structures for the development of enterprises, productivity centres (for example Botswana, Egypt, Malawi, Seychelles, Zambia) and support services units to cooperative-type enterprises (Mali, Niger); strengthening of productivity management capacities (for example Seychelles, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda);
• strengthening of management capacities of SMEs through the SIYB programme (box 3.5), southern Africa; adaptation of the programme for French-speaking countries (Gérez mieux votre enterprise (GERME): Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal);

• formulation of a programme for strengthening a subregional network of organizations or support structures for artisans and the informal sector in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Togo);
• improved access by small and micro-enterprises to decentralized credit through concerted support with the traditional banking system (BCEAO: West Africa; currently being extended to central Africa/BEAC); the PA-SMEC programme in conjunction with the BCEAO has developed a database on decentralized credit intervention structures in the area covered;
• improvement, through a concerted process, of the legislative framework regulating cooperatives in the countries of the Sahel, as well as in Congo and Cameroon with technical support of the interregional ILO programme COOPREFORM; capitalization and broad dissemination (in the region and beyond) of the experience of the ACOPAM programme;
• promotion of a conducive legal, institutional and administrative environment for cooperative development through a process of participatory cooperative policy and law-making; this has been done under the international programme COOPREFORM in 33 countries;
• capitalization and dissemination of the methods, techniques and material produced by ACOPAM in the fields of self-managed produce marketing, food security, small-scale irrigation, natural resource management and savings and credit. A new regional project, "Cooperative Support to Local Employment Development" (PACDEL), which will apply the ACOPAM approach to a broader target group and a larger number of African countries, has been designed;
• consolidation of the job-creation capacity of small enterprises by their stronger involvement in labour-intensive programmes and their training in the techniques introduced (southern Africa and West Africa).

Through the ISEP programme, ENT/MAN makes available to small enterprises the wealth and diversity of ILO experience in this sphere: conceptual frameworks and general policy documents on the development of small enterprises; documentation and dissemination of experience acquired and methods used; and measures to ensure that jobs created are of the required quality. This has been achieved through design, supervision and evaluation of projects to strengthen the local capacity to provide services. ENT/MAN ensures technical backstopping of regional and action research projects and programmes such as productivity and mutual health insurance in the informal sector (United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda), support programmes to strengthen the private sector (Benin, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritania, Niger), support for the informal sector (Burkina Faso, Mali), promotion of food processing enterprises headed by women (Benin), SIYB/GERME (southern, East and West Africa), productivity improvement through the Enterprise Africa programme (West and southern Africa), promotion of micro and small enterprises through the Maghreb programme (Morocco and Tunisia).

Greater emphasis must be placed on the experience acquired by certain regional programmes to combat poverty and develop local employment. Thus after several years of work in the field of technical cooperation in West and Central Africa, support for grass-roots development, in particular through subregional PA-SMEC and ACOPAM programmes and national programmes (ACODEP in Mali, CUROR in Cameroon, COOP/Zinder project in Niger, the programme to strengthen the capacities of local and regional development actors and operators in labour-intensive techniques in Madagascar, SOGVERS in Togo, the poverty reduction programme in Kenya, etc.), the ILO has developed a high quality partnership for the promotion of producer organizations.

The approach used has been essentially participatory: it has been developed around several themes within the framework of the fight against unemployment through the creation of jobs and development at the grass-roots and local levels, including the management of community irrigated areas, cereal banks, land management, grass-roots financing, gender, local development, health insurance mutual funds, cooperative reforms, decentralization and the emergence of local communities.

Both by the variety and relevance of the spheres they cover and the originality and efficiency of their approach, these programmes are generating growing interest from an increasing number of interlocutors:

• many countries, outside the area originally covered, both in Africa and in other continents, are regularly requesting their support and are already using the pedagogical tools developed and the publications produced;
• technical and financial partners are requesting the expertise and methodological tools available for setting up and implementing their own projects and programmes (World Bank, European Union, UNDP, bilateral cooperation, NGOs, etc.);⁽¹⁾
• the ILO, encouraged by these experiences, is attempting to validate new forms of technical cooperation and to make use of the openness and richness resulting from a multidisciplinary and participatory approach and the involvement of a wide range of collaborators mutually reinforced by a trans-sectoral and multidisciplinary base.

The approaches and strategies used by these programmes have often included: the participatory identification of problems; the participatory definition of means likely to resolve the problems encountered; the design of methodologies and tools; the testing of tools in real situations; capitalization; and dissemination among other partners.

Innovative participatory methods have in this context been drawn up and validated within the framework of field action. They have become enriched over time and acquired a global perspective with the initiation of activities of a strategic kind.

The forms of intervention have enabled genuine networks of partners to be established. They have also increased the intervention capacities of the technical cooperation programmes thanks to the availability of partners whose competencies have gradually been strengthened, thus opening up new opportunities for jobs and the development of local competencies.

The idea of these networks is furthermore very strongly encouraged by the competent authorities in the countries of intervention, namely the ministers responsible for employment, the rural and informal sectors, the promotion of women and the environment, amongst others.

Most of these programmes are currently at a decisive stage of transfer, capitalization and dissemination; efforts are being made to demonstrate their effectiveness through the capacity of their partners to ensure the continuity of the activities and the networks.

Promotion of democracy and international
labour standards

The process of democratization has continued in Africa despite economic problems which have weakened parties to collective bargaining. The ILO has helped consolidate this process by providing advisory services and organizing seminars at the national, regional and subregional levels on various issues such as: the application of standards; working conditions; occupational safety and health; labour relations; and freedom of association.

Since 1994, there has been an enhancement in ILO programmes and activities in the are